{"id":317868,"date":"2026-08-10T17:02:16","date_gmt":"2026-08-10T17:02:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/317868\/"},"modified":"2026-08-10T17:02:16","modified_gmt":"2026-08-10T17:02:16","slug":"people-ran-back-and-forth-across-the-williamsburg-bridge-for-insane-marathon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/317868\/","title":{"rendered":"People ran back and forth across the Williamsburg Bridge for insane \u2018marathon\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

It takes a certain kind of person to do a marathon<\/a>.<\/p>\n

It takes another special type to run a marathon in \u201cprogressively worse places,\u201d like a 1.38-mile course simply going back and forth across the Williamsburg Bridge.<\/p>\n

But that was the initial idea behind the Williamsburg Bridge Marathon<\/a>, an unofficial event now in its fourth year with no permit, no entry fee \u2014 and no predetermined distance.<\/p>\n

This past Friday, well after sunset, runners lined up on the Manhattan side of the bridge, but wouldn\u2019t know how far to go until after they\u2019d started.<\/p>\n

People ran back and forth across the Williamsburg Bridge for an unusual and unofficial \u201cmarathon\u201d this past weekend. Matt White<\/p>\n

A random computer-generated number between 10 and 100 would be posted on the event website, letting them know how many spans of the bridge to complete (and log on the fitness app Strava).<\/p>\n

This year, it was 17 bridge spans (approximating 21.42 miles) a disappointingly short year, according to race organizer and creator Matt White.<\/p>\n

\u201cHopefully the random number generator gives us something harder next time,\u201d White told The Post.<\/p>\n

That being said, there were still plenty of DNFs (\u201cdid not finish\u201d), but 13 women and 55 men completed the race, with Maya Geller taking top prize for the ladies (with a time of 3:15:04) and Joe Cady coming out on top for the guys (2:30:13).<\/p>\n

After failing to qualify for the New York City Marathon<\/a>, White decided on a whim to create his own race.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had gone out for drinks the night before, and I was like, \u2018Yeah, I bet I can do it,’\u201d the 31-year-old software engineer told BK Reader<\/a> last year. \u201cI really liked the idea of continuing to do marathons in progressively worse locations.\u201d<\/p>\n

The first year, around 20 runners came out. This year, hundreds gathered for the strange event, with race volunteer James Cashen<\/a> estimating anywhere between 300 and 400 attended for the same reason many people start running \u2014 a sense of community.<\/p>\n

Now in its fourth year, the Williamsburg Bridge Marathon attracts hundreds of runners looking for a unique experience. Nathan Yan<\/p>\n

\u201cTo me, the race is special because it represents the best parts of New York and the running community,\u201d Cashen told The Post. \u201cIt\u2019s gritty, difficult and continues to build around the energy of fun-loving NYC runners.<\/p>\n

Many participants sign up because of the absurd nature of the race, with previous participants leaving reviews like, \u201cNot finishing this race was a win in itself,\u201d and \u201cThis is not actually a race \u2014 more of a group experience in mutual pain.\u201d<\/p>\n

It also speaks to the community-building group running events lends itself to.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo me, the race is special because it represents the best parts of New York and the running community,\u201d Cashen told The Post. \u201cIt\u2019s gritty, difficult and continues to build around the energy of fun-loving NYC runners. Kaeli T.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it embraces what running should be all about: Having fun, not taking yourself too seriously, and putting yourself up to challenges you think may be too steep and learning to overcome them,\u201d he added. Kaeli T.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like that you can go to the bridge at almost any time of day, and there will almost always be groups of people doing radically different things,\u201d White told BK Reader.<\/p>\n

Similarly, Nathan Yan ran the course for the first time last year, right after he\u2019d moved to the city, in search of a \u201chigh-effort ridiculousness\u201d endurance event where he\u2019d find his people.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was one of my very first \u2018New York\u2019 experiences,\u201d Yan told The Post. \u201cI just moved from Colorado where [I] used to do things like 36-hour night skiing marathons \u2014 so this was right up my alley.\u201d<\/p>\n

For this year\u2019s race, Yan didn\u2019t have high hopes of running far with the high humidity and bridge elevation.<\/p>\n

Kaeli T. (pictured) said the highlight for her was the people who showed up. Kaeli T.<\/p>\n

So instead, he strapped a 45-pound rig to his back, opting to play DJ for the night and see how far he could go.<\/p>\n

While he completed seven bridge spans (9.06 mi), the highlight was continuously passing by people gathered on the bridge, dancing and cheering on the runners pushing to finish.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that\u2019s one of the beautiful things for the format of this marathon: There\u2019s so much back-and-forth between all the runners and support groups, you could be at a PR pace, fun pace or Type II fun pace, but no one ever gets \u2018left behind\u2019 on the bridge route,\u201d Yan said.<\/p>\n

Yan\u2019s DJ rig was one of first-time Williamsburg Bridge marathoner Kaeli T.\u2019s favorite things about the race. She said the atmosphere and energy were top-notch.<\/p>\n

This year, it was 17 bridge spans \u2014 approximating 21.42 miles \u2014 a disappointingly short year, according to race organizer and creator Matt White. James Cashen<\/p>\n

\u201cI had people clapping as I ran past, and this woman shouted \u2018Get it, girl!\u2019 at about 12:15 am on her way home from a night out,\u201d Kaeli recalled. James Cashen<\/p>\n

\u201cMy favorite part was, hands down, the people who showed up,\u201d the 28-year-old told The Post.<\/p>\n

\u201cSomeone brought a cake and was sharing slices at the midway point,\u201d she added. \u201cPeople brought lawn chairs and yoga mats to hang out on the bridge. The vibes overall were fantastic.\u201d<\/p>\n

While she was disappointed it wasn\u2019t a full or even ultramarathon<\/a>, Kaeli was \u201cgrateful to get a good night\u2019s sleep after.\u201d<\/p>\n

But it was the support from complete strangers that night that stuck out in her mind.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had people clapping as I ran past, and this woman shouted \u2018Get it, girl!\u2019 at about 12:15 am on her way home from a night out,\u201d Kaeli recalled.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose random moments of support are what make running and races so special in general.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cashen agrees with the sentiment that races, especially the unusual ones, embody what running should be about.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving fun, not taking yourself too seriously and putting yourself up to challenges you think may be too steep and learning to overcome them,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t